Bangabhumi (, meaning the land of Vanga, also spelt Bongobhumi) was an organization that aimed to create a

Bengali Hindu Bengali Hindus () are adherents of Hinduism who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. They make up the majority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Assam's Barak Valley ...

country for

Bangladeshi Hindus Hinduism is the second largest religion in Bangladesh, as according to the 2022 Census of Bangladesh, approximately 13.1 million people responded as Hindus, constituting 7.95% of the nation. Bangladesh is the third-largest Hindu populated co ...

in southwestern

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

by partitioning, envisioned by Banga Sena. Banga Sena () is a

separatist Separatism is the advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, regional, governmental, or gender separation from the larger group. As with secession, separatism conventionally refers to full political separation. Groups simply seekin ...

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

organization which advocates formation of Bangabhumi for

Bengali Hindus Bengali Hindus () are adherents of Hinduism who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. They make up the majority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Assam's Barak Valle ...

in Bangladesh. The group is led by Kalidas Baidya. The movement was founded in 1973 in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

soon after the

independence of Bangladesh The independence of Bangladesh was Proclamation of Bangladeshi Independence, declared from Pakistan on 26 March 1971, which is now celebrated as Independence Day (Bangladesh), Independence Day. The Bangladesh Liberation War started on 26 March ...

to support the Hindu refugees from Bangladesh, who were targeted by the

Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...

in the 1971 Bangladesh atrocities. However, this movement did not receive much support at that time. In an interview with

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

in 2001, Chittaranjan Sutar, one of the alleged organisers of the movement, denied supporting the creation of a new nation.Bangladesh alleges 'separatist plot'
BBC, 22 December 2001 As of 2025, both groups seem to have gone defunct. Unrelated movements with the same name popped up in

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

and neighboring states in India. However, no proposal gained much traction.

Banga Sena

Major General Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, the Director General of the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), in a talk with the Director General of the Border Security Force (BSF) Ajay Raj Sharma in 2004 said that the extremist group Banga Sena was carrying out

terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

and

secession Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a Polity, political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal i ...

ist activities against Bangladesh from its bases in the Indian state of

. Khodeza Begum in an article in the '' Global Politician'' accused

of helping to organize the Banga Sena. In March 2006, a senior official of the home ministry of Bangladesh expressed concern over the anti-Bangladesh activities by the Banga Sena. Regarding this he added that Bangladesh wants a peaceful border with neighboring India and the situation has vastly improved following coordinated border patrolling by both countries. A Bangladeshi official stated that the organization is a "threat to the sovereignty of Bangladesh". reprinted in: More than 400 members of the Banga Sena were arrested in India on 18 February 2003, for trying to cross over into Bangladesh from the district of North 24 Parganas in southern West Bengal. According to police sources, activists belonging to the organization began gathering at the Indo-Bangladesh border at Halencha, North 24 Parganas in the jurisdiction of the Bagda police station since morning that day. In January 2004, the director general of the Bangladesh Rifles gave a list of the camps of the remaining Shanti Bahni elements in the North-East Indian states of

Tripura Tripura () is a States and union territories of India, state in northeastern India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a populat ...

and

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

and in adjoining Indian provinces to the director general of the Border Security Force. The list documented that the Banga Sena, along with several other groups, carried out communal tension and separatist activities against Bangladesh from West Bengal. Indian Foreign Secretary said that India will cooperate in tackling the Banga Sena and other

insurgent An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare against a larger authority. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric nature: small irregular forces face a large, well ...

groups. In September 2007, the representatives of two

NGOs A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

, Diphu Citizen Peace Forum and Karbi

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

, in the Karbi Anglong District of Assam said that the Banga Sena was involved in

extortion Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit (e.g., money or goods) through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, although making unfounded ...

and it could pose a threat to the peace in the region. Regarding the activities of the Banga Sena, the Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury made it clear that his country will not tolerate any statement or move against its territory or sovereignty. The All India Minority Forum, an organization for religious minorities in India, also expressed concern over this organization.

References

{{Hindu Nationalism 1973 establishments in India Political organizations established in 1973 Hinduism in Bangladesh Hinduism-related controversies Politics of Bangladesh Hindu organisations based in Bangladesh Hindu political parties in Bangladesh Secessionist organizations in Asia Militant Hindu groups Hindutva Bangladesh–India relations Separatism in Bangladesh Political parties of minorities in Bangladesh

Banga Sena

See also

References